Road Accidents Claim 166 Lives In Ogun

Road accidents have claimed 166 lives in Ogun State in the last 11 months, says the Ogun State Sector Commander, Clement Oladele.

Oladele disclosed this on Thursday at the 12th Annual Road Safety/Walk/Road Show of Temidayo Ogan Child Safety and Support (TOCSS) Foundation, held in partnership with the Federal Road Safety Corp, FRSC, Ogun State Command along the border communities of Ogun and Lagos States.

Oladele said the figure represented a reduction from what was recorded last year in Ogun State in which 270 people died, adding that the goal of the command was to ensure 8.2 death per every 100,000 and to further reduce it to the barest minimum, saying that advocacy was key to doing this.

On the theme of the safety walk, which is “Safer Mental Health, Safer Roads,” Oladele said it was in line with the United Nations Decade of Action Plan to halt road fatalities as well as in line with the FRSC vision.

Ogun FRSC Sector Commander, Clement Oladele (left) with Temidayo Ogan, Executive Director, TOCSS Foundation during the walk.

He said the mental state of individuals would to a large extent determine safety on the road, saying that drivers taking alcohol before driving, people with unstable mental health conditions or family challenge or having lost a job should desist from driving as such people could contribute to crashes on roads.

Executive Director, TOCSS Foundation, Mrs Temidayo Ogan said many road traffic accidents and deaths in Nigeria were recently analysed and that the analysis results indicated the mental health status pattern.

“So, it is in response to the hidden road traffic and high risk factor that the foundation launched the ‘Safer Mental Health, Safer Roads’ campaign, adding that every road user required 100 percent mental health or concentration level to avoid road traffic incidents and crashes while using the roads.

*PM News